The Black Cat
by Swatbot 12-27
Summary: A year after the Winter War, Toshiro Hitsugaya and Rangiku Matsumoto are sent back to Karakura Town. But this mission will prove to be anything but ordinary. -ON HIATUS; UNDERGOING REWRITE-
1. The New Tennant

_Bleach: The Black Cat  
Chapter 1_  
_The New Tennant_

"Damn these hollows!" says Ichigo angrily as he cleaves yet another hollow in half. There had been a sudden surge in hollow appearances. It seemed like every 5 minutes he was killing another one. Rukia had recently been stationed in Karakura town to help him. It had gotten so bad that she had to send a report to the soul society saying that if things didn't get better, even she would need backup. _

* * *

_

_Ichigo's house (his room)  
_

Rukia is laying on his bed, reading. "Hey, Ichigo, do you mind picking up some more soul candy for me? I've used almost all of it fighting all of these hollows lately."

"Go get it yourself!"

"I'm busy."

"Doing What?!"

"Studying."

"WHA-_STUDYING?!?_ SINCE WHEN DO YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR GRADES?!?"

She looks annoyed. "If I'm going to be posing as a student, I might as well pose as a_ good_ student, right?"

"wha- gyh- bu- _rrrrgh_!!! FINE!" He snatches the container out of her hand and marches out the door. _

* * *

_

_Outside Urahara's Shop_

As Ichigo approaches Urahara's shop, he notices a girl standing outside.

She is not that tall, about 4'9". She has long black hair with purple on the edge of her bangs. She also has purple eyes.

She is staring at Urahara's shop with a faraway look in her eyes.

"Hey! Who are you?" Ichigo asks blatantly.

"Wha-who me?" she spins around, and looks rather surprised.

"Yeah, you. What are you doing here?"

"Huh? OH! I-I thought this was a book store! You see, I'm new in town, and I really wanted to find this rare manga…uh…never mind. I guess I'm in the wrong part of town. 'bye!" she jabbers hurriedly, a large sweatdrop behind her head. Before even waiting for a response, she dashes off.

"…that… was weird" Ichigo says to himself. There was something strange about her. He couldn't put his finger on what, exactly, but…

As he is walking back home to give Rukia her package, he unexpectedly runs into the Captain and Lieutenant of Squad 10.

"Toshiro? Rangiku? What are you two doing here?" he asks casually.

_"It's Captain Hitsugaya, _not _Toshiro. Anyways, _we're responding to a report that there has been an abnormal amount of hollow activity here lately." responds Toshiro.

"Oh. So you guys will be here awhile, huh?"

"Yes, that is correct."

"Wait, where will you be staying?"

"I've found an apartment that will serve me well enough."

"And I'm staying with Orihime again." adds Rangiku matter-of-factly. _

* * *

_

_Later, back in Ichigo's room_

"Hey, Rukia, are there any other soul reapers here besides us, Rangiku, and Toshiro?"

"I don't know. Why?"

"Well, I met this girl earlier…she was in front of Urahara's shop…I thought she might be a soul reaper. There was definitely something strange about her, that's for sure."

"Did you sense any spiritual pressure from her?"

"Well... no, but... Look, you _know _I'm not good at that kind of thing!"

Suddenly there is a commotion downstairs.

"Sounds like they're bringing in another patient…" Ichigo wanders downstairs to see what's up…

The girl he met earlier is in the stretcher. Yuzu looks distraught. "She…doesn't have a pulse…Dad…I think we're too late…"

"Hmm…I don't think so… You girls go to bed, I'll take things from here." he wheels her into the recovery room and closes the door.

* * *

Whatever suspicions Ichigo had about that girl multiplied ten times when the supposed "dead girl" was eating breakfast with them.

"My name is Kyoko Naka. I'm… from out of town."

"So, where areyou from?" asks Ichigo.

"…" She only looks down at her plate guiltily.

"Do you have any family in town?"

"…no…"

"Where are you staying?"

"Uh…well, I hadn't really found a place yet…"

"WELL, THAT SETTLES IT!!!" said Ichigo's dad. "YOU'RE STAYING HERE!"

"Hey, dad, in case you haven't noticed, we already have Rukia staying here. Now you want two strange girls here?" asks Karin.

"Of course! The more, the merrier!"

"Dad, people get _arrested_ for stuff like this." she states blandly.

"_Oh, Karin,_ how can you accuse your own father of such _immoral_ things!! I only want to help this poor girl!"

"Whatever."

"Thank you for your hospitality." says Kyoko calmly. "It's very gracious of you to let me stay in your home like this. I'll try not to be too much of a bother to you all."

_The End? _

_

* * *

_

_Well, there's chapter 1. It's not much, really, it's just an introduction to the story._

_I do not own Bleach or any of these characters, except for Kyoko. Everyone else belongs to Tite Kubo._

-If you happen to find any errors (grammatical, spelling, missing sentence, etc.) _please_ let me know!

--unfortunately, when I upload chapters, the website will mess up the spacing and such, so I might miss a few mistakes.


	2. A Brush with Bad Luck

The Black Cat

A Brush with Bad Luck

* * *

_CRASH!_

_"Kyoko!"_

"_oops. _My bad." says Kyoko sheepishly to Ichigo, trying not to step in the steadily growing puddle of soy sauce on the floor.

"_Geez,_ that's the _third_ thing you've broken today!" gripes Ichigo. It was the honest truth. She had already dropped a cup and knocked the glass pitcher that was going to be used for maple syrup off the table. She had been reaching for the spare bottle of maple syrup and accidentally knocked the bottle of soy sauce out of the cabinet.

"I'm _really _sorry!" she cried as she reached for the mop she had just put away a few minutes ago.

They were picking up the table from breakfast. Everyone was sure not to let Kyoko handle anything even _remotely_ breakable. As she put the silverware in the sink, she suddenly stiffened, a dark look stealing over her face. Ichigo watched this with curiosity. She then spun around, her somewhat overly-cheerful expression back in place. "Hey, Mr. Kurosaki, you don't mind if I go out for a bit, do you?"

"Not at all. You're only a guest here, remember? You really don't have a curfew or anything."

"Ok, thanks! I'll be back later." she said as walked towards the door.

"I think I'll go out, too." says Ichigo.

"What are you doing?" asks Rukia as soon as Kyoko was out of earshot.

"I told you, I think she's a soul reaper. I want to tail her and see what I can find out about her."

They follow her outside. As soon as she reaches the corner of the yard, she takes off into a jog. As Ichigo starts to follow her, she turns her head to look back at him. Not paying attention to what's in front of her, her head collides painfully with a low street sign. She remains in place for a few moments before falling on her ass.

_"Owww_!" she moans, rubbing her forehead. "How long has _that _been there?"

"You okay?" asks Ichigo.

_"ugh, wonderful_. Why were you following me?"

_"I wasn't following you!"_

"Yes, you were."

**"Was not**! I can't help it if I have to go the same direction as you." Just then, Rukia's soul phone goes off.

"Ichigo!"

"Right." They both head off to take care of the hollows, leaving Kyoko on the ground, still rubbing her head. As they were running, Rukia' soul phone went off several more times. Hollows had begun appearing all over town.

"Man, of all the times for Chad and Uryu to be on a class trip..." grumbled Ichigo.

"Ichigo, look at this!" Some of the hollows were disappearing almost as soon as they were appearing.

"Wow. Those two are really on top of things."

* * *

After they defeated the hollows they originally went after, as well as a few others, they met up with Toshiro and Rangiku.

"You certainly weren't exaggerating when you said there were a lot of hollows." comments Toshiro.

"Did anyone else notice that some of them were disappearing really quickly?" asks Rangiku.

"Wait, I thought _you_ werethe ones killing them?" says Ichigo.

"Not us."

* * *

_Later, that night_

Toshiro is getting ready for bed when his soul phone goes off again. Being that he was the nearest, he was responsible for killing them. It didn't bother him, though, because the sooner they resolved this hollow situation, the sooner he could go home. He simply did not have the time or the patience to be fooling around in the world of the living.

He arrives just in time to see one of the hollows fade out of existence. He is surprised to see another soul reaper already fighting them. A soul reaper he did not recognize. She wore a normal shihakusho, but instead of having the normal white hakama-himo*, it was purple, the same shade as her eyes, with a small, neat bow in the back, and the excess ends of the sash trailing out behind her. She was holding her own against the hollows, so Toshiro decided to hang back and watch. He was fascinated by her unique, though rather clumsy fighting cutting down yet another hollow, she finally notices his presence. She whirls around, eyes wide. "_Wha- _Who are you?"

Before she can say anything else, another hollow appears behind her. Caught off guard, it slashes her across her chest before she can even lift her zanpakuto. Toshiro rushes to help. He quickly kills the hollow and turns to her. She is bleeding badly. He scoops her up in his arms_. "Wait. I can't take her to Urahara's_." he thinks to himself_. "Rukia, Rangiku, Ichigo and I are the only soul reapers that are supposed to be here. -meaning that she's probably here illegally. Either way, the fact that she has not revealed herself to us before now means she has a reason for hiding. If I take her to Urahara's, it could lead to trouble..._With on other option, he takes her to the small apartment he is staying in. There, he is faced with a slight dilemma...

* * *

After resting for awhile, Kyoko woke up."_Oww..._Hey! Where am I? What happened?" she says hurriedly, sitting up and looking around.

"You were injured fighting those hollows." said Toshiro, walking into the light streaming in from the window, contrasting the dark room.

"Oh..." she then noticed the bandages. "I guess you're the one who bandaged me up, huh?" she was blushing.

Toshiro turns ten shades of red. _"I-I-I'M SORRY BUT I HAD TO TAKE OFF THE TOP PART OF YOUR SHIHAKUSHO TO GET AT YOUR WOUNDS SO I REALLY HAD NO CHOICE BUT I SWEAR I DIDN'T ENJOY IT AT ALL!" _he says in one breath.

"_oh..._ok." she looked almost hurt.

"W-w-wait! W-what I _meant_ to say was_...uh..." _They share an awkward silence.

"...W-Well, considering you can see me, and that you know about hollows, I'm guessing you're some sort of spiritual being, right?" she says, trying to change the subject.

"I'm a soul reaper."

"Y-you're a soul reaper..." she looked wary.

"...That's right, I remember now. I saw you. ...Can I trust you?"

"Yes, of course you can." he said calmly.

"Thank you... I'm Kyoko. Kyoko Naka. What's your name?" She gets up and puts her shihakusho back on.

"My name is Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya."

"Y-YOU'RE A _CAPTAIN?"_

"That's right... And you're a rogue, aren't you?"

Her eyes widen. "...yes... Are you going to arrest me?"

"...No, I'm not."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't see why I should. You haven't done anything wrong."

"..." Kyoko merely stared at the floor.

"...just so you know...there are three other soul reapers here, two of them who will probably arrest you without asking questions."

She narrows her eyes, deep in thought. "Three... four including you... I thought so." She then walks towards the window. "I have a favor to ask. Please... Stay away from me."

"Why?"

"...I'm bad luck. My entire life, I've only ever brought misfortune to myself and those around me... Toshiro, you have a kind heart... I don't want to see anything bad happen to you. And if you stay around me, something bad _will_ happen to you."

"Wait-" She leaps out of the window before he can stop her.

* * *

The End... for now.

*Hakama-himo: the normally white sash that is tied around most soul reapers' waist.


	3. Houseguest, Soul Reaper, and Student?

_**The Black Cat**_

_**Chapter 3**_

_**Houseguest, Soul Reaper and…Student?**_

* * *

As Ichigo and Rukia walk to school, they meet up with Orihime and Rangiku.

"You're wearing our school uniform." comments Ichigo.

"The captain and I have to pose as students again. He sure wasn't happy about it, either. …Hmm, then again, he's not usually happy about _anything_ is he?"

"Shut up, Matsumoto." says Toshiro blandly as he strolls from between Ichigo and Rukia. "Let's just get this over with."

* * *

_During Class  
_

Their teacher is in the middle of a geography lesson. Toshiro is not paying attention. He is staring out the window, thinking about the strange girl he met the night before.

"Toshiro, can you tell me the capital of Spain?"

"…" (he is not paying attention.)

She turns around, curious as to why one of her best students is ignoring her. "_Ahem. Toshiro?_ Can you _please_ tell me the capital of Spain?"

"…"

"_Mister Hitsugaya! What is the capital of Spain?!"_

"…"

Annoyed she walks up to his desk. **"Toshiro Hitsugaya!"**

He jumps and nearly falls out of his desk. "**What**?"

"**I have asked you **_**three times **_**what the capital of Spain is! You have not answered me **_**once! **_What _is_ it out there that is so interesting to you, anyway?" she asks, peering out the window herself.

"…nothing. I was just thinking."

"_Oh. _Then perhaps you can do your thinking out in the hall-" she is interrupted by a knock on the door. "excuse me."

She walks to the door, where a man hands her some papers.

Rangiku is laughing her head off. Toshiro quickly scribbles a note, balls it up, and tosses it at her, causing it to bounce off her head.

_松本場合は、笑いを続けて、私はあなたに降格されますことを確認しますよ！_

_(-Matsumoto, if you continue to laugh, I'll make sure you are demoted!)_

"A new student?" their teacher asks, reading the papers. "**NO WAY!! Are these numbers right? ….. A-are you **_**sure**_** you're putting her in the right class?" **

She walks back to her desk with a bright smile on her face. "Class, we have a new student. Please welcome Miss Kyoko Naka."

Kyoko walks into the room a few seconds before her introduction and bows blandly. She scans the classroom. Her eyes pause momentarily on Toshiro, though no one notices.

"Hmm…Why don't you take a seat next to Mister Hitsugaya. Perhaps you can show him how to pay attention in class… considering your grades, you must pay pretty good attention yourself."

"meh" she mumbles, then pauses. "_Uh_, Which one is Hitsugaya?" she asks innocently.

"The young man with the obscenely bleached hair that he _claims_ is natural.

"Oh, ok." she says before sitting down.

Now they had class together. Toshiro was staring at her with a mild look of shock on his face. She didn't even react when she saw him.

* * *

_Lunchtime  
_

"**WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN MY SCHOOL!!!" **shouts Ichigo.

"_Hmm…_ Well, I'd hope I'd be learning…"

"**THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEAN! **You don't look nearly old enough to be in high school."

"Neither does _he."_ she jerks her thumb over her shoulder at Toshiro, who became impossibly_ more_ annoyed. "So that doesn't mean anything. Besides, I'm an honor student." Victorious in her argument, she walks off.

She is soon cornered by the other girls of the class and is more or less forced to have lunch with them.

* * *

_Lunch with the girls  
_

"So, you're new around here?" asks Mahana.

"_Yeah_…"

"_So,_ do you see anyone you like?"

"Wha-?…Not really."

"Well, that Hitsugaya kid certainly seems interested in you." comments Ryo, looking up from her book.

"_HUH???"_

"He keeps looking over here. He never did that before. It seems to me like he's interested in _you_."

"HEY! You should go talk to him!" chimes in Michiru.

"No way!"The girls continue to bicker. Suddenly, Kyoko senses the spiritual pressure of several hollows nearby.

"Hey, I just remembered I have to go do something."

"Hey! Where are you going?!"

Kyoko runs off without answering. Toshiro watches her curiously. Almost as soon as she gets out of sight, his, Rukia's, and Rangiku's soul phones go off.

"I'll-" Rukia begins to offer to go after the hollows.

"_I'll go._" says Toshiro before marching off.

* * *

_In town  
_

Just as Toshiro arrives where the hollows are, their signal disappears. He looks around frantically. _Where could they have gone? _Just then, he sees someone slip out of sight. "Hey, wait!" he shouts, but to no avail. The person escapes, and there isn't a trace of spiritual pressure anywhere.

* * *

_Back at School  
_

Toshiro was late. _Very_ late. As soon as he opened the door to the classroom, he was greeted by the teacher's angry face, her eyebrow twitching slightly.

"_Well, well. _Looks like mister Hitsugaya _finally_ decided to come back to class.

"I-"

"_Hmm. _Considering how much you seem to _like_ it outside my classroom, perhaps you should spend the rest of the day in the hall." She slams the door in his face, leaving him out there all day, just as she said.

* * *

_After school  
_

Kyoko is walking home. She stops walking abruptly when someone grabs her arm.

"_Wha_-?! Oh, Toshiro! You scared me!" she says innocently.

He only glares at her.

"_Um, _did you need me for something?"

"You can cut the crap, Kyoko." he says sharply.

"W-what are you talking about?"

"I still remember you from last night, you know."

"…I see." she closes her eyes and lets out a sigh. "I also told you to stay away from me."

"_Why? _Who _are _you, anyways?"

"That's-" she gasps slightly and cuts off mid-sentence, staring into the distance.

"What is it?"

"…Hollows." She jerked her arm out of his grasp.

"Where are you going?!"

"Where do you _think_?" she shouts over her shoulder as she runs off, Toshiro at her heels.

* * *

He ends up following her to the same park where Ichigo first fought Ulquiorra and Yammy. Twisting her head left and right, she scans in all directions. _"Where are you?" _she mutters softly to herself.

"What the hell are you doing?" asks Toshiro, aggravated. "If this is some stupid plan to avoid my questions, then you can just give up."

"_Ugh, _why did you follow me, you _moron_? _I _told _you to stay away from me!_"

"_I'm_ the captain here, so I don't think I'll be taking any orders from the likes of _you. _And I'd appreciate it if you didn't call me a _moron_."

"_Humph!" _crossing her arms, she turned away from him and stuck her nose in the air. As she was about to march off, she suddenly gasped and whipped around. In a matter of seconds, she abandoned her gigai, shoved Toshiro out of the way, and thrust her zanpakuto into the stomach of the hollow that had been sneaking up on him until now.

"…how…?" stammered Toshiro in awe. He had never had a hollow sneak up on him like that before. He could usually sense them coming.

Kyoko chuckled rather sadistically. "Sneaky little bastard, aren't you?" With one swing, she cut the hollow clean in half.

Toshiro leaves his gigai and gets to his feet. "How was that hollow able to mask it's presence so well? And more importantly, how were _you_ able to detect it?"

"Just a little talent of mine. I can detect spiritual pressure at a far greater sensitivity than the average soul reaper. In case you haven't noticed, I can also mask my own spiritual pressure perfectly. That's how I've been able to live in the same house as Ichigo and Rukia without them confronting me."

"Interesting, but perhaps we should save this conversation for a better time."

"That's the best idea you've had yet." smirked Kyoko as more hollows surrounded them.

* * *

They made quick work of the hollows, fighting together flawlessly. Despite the fact that Kyoko's skills were not nearly as honed as Toshiro's, they had no trouble.

"Not bad…your skills need fine-tuning, but you're still a very talented soul reaper."

"Thanks, I _guess_." she replied stiffly, walking off.

"Where are you going?"

"Home, _duh._" she shot him one last glare as she left.

About halfway back to his apartment, Toshiro realized that he never got to ask her any of the questions that had been bugging him.

* * *

_**The End…for now…**_

Well, there's chapter three for ya. lots of arguments. -lots of scene changes, too.

Oh! before i forget (as i'm prone to) i want to give you a little background info.

-Kyoko's a genius. well, as far as book-smarts go, anyways. She's the kinda girl who would be sharing a class with Light Yagami. -Not quite_ that_ smart, or crazy for that matter, but in the same classroom. (not tryin' to burn Light by _any_ means!)

One more thing. this is supposed to take place after the Winter War and Aizen is defeated, (as the summary now says) yet i've only read up to the fight between Kenpachi and Nnoitra.(what can i say, the internet is distracting!) -so if something happens to be completely wrong, like someone who's supposed to be dead by now is up and walkin' around, please don't hate me.

oh, yeah, and I don't own Bleach, Kubo-sensei does; you know the drill.

-sorry for the looong footnotes! ^^'


	4. Masochist

The Black Cat

_Masochist_

* * *

_Breakfast_

Ichigo and Rukia were both exhausted from constantly fighting hollows. Tousle haired and grumbling, they both sat at the breakfast table, nibbling at pieces of toast. A glaring contrast, Kyoko went twirling around the table, seemingly more cheerful than usual.

"What's up with you?" asks Ichigo, annoyed.

"This!" she says, holding a manga out in front of her. The manga was called 'Ch!b! Pan!c,' and it looked as though Rukia might've drawn it.

"Which _is_…?"

"Don't you remember me saying something about looking for a rare manga? Well, this is it!" she says happily.

"That's nice. Now shut up."

"Behave, Ichigo!" scolds Yuzu, waving her spatula threateningly.

"I think I'm gonna head off to school now." says Kyoko as she picks up her book bag.

"Kinda early, isn't it?" asks Karin.

"Yeah, but I was late yesterday. I really didn't like making such a big entrance on my first day. 'bye!" she shouts over her shoulder as she jogs out the door.

THWACK!!

"_Ow!" _Kyoko rubs her head from where she had hit her head on the street sign once again, and sets off at a slightly slower pace.

* * *

_Later, and elsewhere_

Toshiro was not having a good morning. He was still more than angry with himself about the previous night. He couldn't have had a better opportunity to ask questions, and he had completely blown it! What was worse was that the soul society was already badgering him about his mission. How could he possibly get any results after just two days! "_Ugh, and now I am forced to waste half the day in that school with those idiotic children!" _he thought to himself angrily. Never had he been more grateful to be in the company of his lieutenant. Though she wasn't apt to use it, she at least had a _half_ a grain of sense. Heaving a sigh, he continued down the street, heading straight toward a rather questionable-looking part of town.

~*~*~*~

Abandoned, dirty-looking buildings lined the street. Toshiro ignored them, however, for he was still lost in thought, trying to figure out the best way to quickly solve the hollow problem and go home.

"_KYAAAAAAHHHH!!!"_

His thoughts were interrupted by a high-pitched scream. It had sounded like it had come from the alley up ahead. Without thinking, he dashed off in the direction of the source of the commotion. When he rounded the corner, he found books scattered over the ground. Three large, burly young men were at the other side of the alley. One of them was gripping a struggling young girl by her upper arms. Toshiro couldn't help but do a double take when he realized just who the girl was.

"**LET ME GO, YOU SLUG!!"**

"Uh-uh, not yet. We ain't done wit you, yet!"

The other two approach her, arms outstretched, greedy looks on their faces. Gasping, Kyoko squirmed away from the two approaching men, still trying to fight off the man behind her. It was useless, however. They were simply too big and to strong for her. Realizing that she was not going to be able to free herself, Toshiro dropped his things and charged. He tackled the man holding Kyoko, who, in his shock, let her go.

"**WHAT THE HELL?!?!"**

Kyoko was barely able to scramble out of the way as the two other men attacked Toshiro, the nearest of which grabbed him by his hair.

"**You little PUNK! MIND YOUR OWN DAMN BUSINESS!!!" **he shouted as he drug Toshiro, who was still a little stunned from the impact of the tackle, to his feet. **"I'LL BREAK YOUR DAMN NECK!!!"**

"tch…bastard." Toshiro mumbled as he jumped into the air and planted his foot squarely in his face, sending him flying into the wall and knocking him out. He then turned to face the third man, but before he could react, he had punched him in the jaw. He raised his fist to strike again, but Toshiro was too fast for him. Unable to reach his face, he punched him in the gut, sending spiritual energy through his hand to make sure it did real damage. He then turned to Kyoko, who was still sitting on the ground, eyes wide.

"What are you waiting for?!" shouted Toshiro, grabbing her by the wrist and dragging her along.

"W-wait, my stuff-"

"Forget it. You can come back for it later. We need to leave now before they wake up." He is able to grab his own briefcase as they run by, though.

~*~*~*~

After jogging a few blocks, they reach a more public area, so they can slow down.

"Why didn't you use your soul reaper abilities against them? You were clearly in danger." asks Toshiro, slinging his briefcase over his shoulder.

"… Because they were humans. I will never raise my zanpakuto against a human."

"But they would've-"

"_Just drop it, already!_"

They continue walking, passing coffee shops and cheerful people. Kyoko rubs her arm where the man had gripped her.

"Why did you save me?" asks Kyoko unexpectedly.

"I don't know. Perhaps it was because you were in danger. I guess I'm not the kind of man who will simply stand around and let an innocent woman get hurt."

"… How do you know I'm innocent?"

Toshiro turns around and looks her in the eyes.

"You're bleeding!"

"hmm? Oh." Toshiro wipes his chin where the blood had been trickling down from his busted lip.

"See? You're hurt now because of me! I _told_ you to stay away from me, and yet you keep coming back! What are you, some sort of masochist?"

"No, I'm not. And stop blaming yourself for everything."

"But it's _my fault!_ I explained it to you already. I'm bad luck. And if you stay around me, you'll only keep getting hurt again and again."

Toshiro looked as though he was about to say something, but he was cut off when a small doxon, tethered by a leash, runs in between them. It turns and runs behind Kyoko, and it's leash trips her up. She falls flat on her face.

Toshiro stares at her, wide-eyed. "Kyoko… _um,… _are you… _okay?_"

"_Oooooowwww…_ Yeah, I'm okay. I'm used to it. Stuff like this happens to me all the time."

"I see." says Toshiro, still staring at her. "_She's beginning to have a point. I doubt many humans could survive having luck like hers." _he thinks to himself. He helps her up and they continue to walk to school. Lost in her own thoughts, Kyoko gazes at the back of his head as they walk.

* * *

_Class_

"Arisawa?"

"Here."

"Asano?"

"Right here!"

"Hitsugaya?"

"…"

"Honsho?"

"Here!"

"Inoue?"

"Here."

"Kojima?"

"Here."

"Kuchiki?"

"Here."

"Kunieda?"

"Here."

"Kurosaki?"

"Here."

"Matsumoto?"

"Heeeeerrre!!"

"Naka?"

"…"

"Natsui?"

"Here."

"Ogawa?"

"Here."

"Two absent. Has anyone seen Mr. Hitsugaya?" asks Ms. Ochi. Rangiku and Rukia exchange puzzled looks. "What about Miss Naka? Ichigo, Rukia, I understand that you three live in the same house. Where is she?"

"Uh, She left before us. I don't know where she is." replies Ichigo.

"Oh. Alright, then. Today we're going to talk about-" she is interrupted once again by a knock on the door. "Excuse me." She walks to the door and opens it curiously. "Well, look who decided to join us today- What _happened _to you two?!" she exclaims, all professionalism lost.

Toshiro and Kyoko were standing in the doorway, covered in scrapes and bruises. Toshiro's lip was still bleeding.

"Unfortunately, we were involved in a bit of a disturbance this morning." explained Toshiro calmly. "Though it did result in violence, I assure you it is nothing to be concerned about." he adds as he sits down. Kyoko sits down, too. She continues to stare somewhat vacantly at Toshiro for most of the day.

* * *

_Lunch_

Ichigo, Rukia, Orihime, Toshiro, and Rangiku were all having lunch on the roof.

"So, what was up with this morning, Toshiro?" asks Ichigo.

"_It's Captain Hitsugaya! ~sigh~ _Like I said, I was involved in a slight disturbance."

"Hollows?"

"No."

"Wait" interjects Rangiku. "So you're telling me _humans_ did that to you?"

"…yes."

Rangiku tries, and fails horribly, to stifle her laughter. "_~snicker~ I-I can't believe my captain got beat up by humans!! _At least _tell me they were armed!"_

"…no."

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!" Rangiku nearly falls over she is laughing so hard.

After she finally calmed down a bit, they began discussing the hollow situation.

"Have any of you been able to find anything?" asks Toshiro.

"No, nothing." replies Rukia.

"Well, we need to find something soon. The soul society already expects results."

"So soon?" asks Rangiku, still snickering slightly.

"Excuse me." came a voice from behind Toshiro. They all turn and see Kyoko standing there.

"_How long has she been standing there?!" _thinks Rukia, alarmed.

"Toshiro… I… I just wanted to thank you for saving me." she said, bowing. "I also wanted to apologize for how I've been acting lately. You saved my life, and I was nothing but rude to you."

"Don't worry about it."

"But-"

"I said not to worry about it. It's really no big deal. Now stop wasting your time apologizing and go and eat your lunch."

"_Uh, _right. 'bye." she said, taking the hint that she had interrupted something and leaving.

"Wow. You certainly handled that well, captain." says Rangiku lightly.

* * *

_Later_

Once again, Toshiro was fighting hollows. _"How annoying! They're relatively weak hollows, but there's just so damn __many__ of them!" _thinks Toshiro angrily. Just as three of the hollows surround him, a familiar voice calls out.

"Hey! Why didn't anyone invite _me _to this little party?!"

Toshiro turns to see Kyoko standing on the roof of one of the buildings. She was in her shihakusho.

"What are you doing here?" asks Toshiro, killing the three that were surrounding him.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to kill hollows. I mean, it's my job, isn't it?" She drew her own zanpakuto. It was the first time Toshiro had gotten a proper look at it. The blade was the perfect length to suit her small body. The hilt was tied with purple material, to match the rest of her. But the most noticeable part was the guard. It appeared to be made of gold, with a sapphire at the top, and a ruby at the bottom. It's sheath was also purple, with three gold chains looping from the top. Without another word, she began to cut down the hollows. It would take much less time to do away with the hollows with two people fighting instead of just one.

"Thank you for your assistance." said Toshiro.

"No problem! I was getting kinda bored anyways." she says cheerfully.

"I see. You mind explaining the sudden change in personality?"

"Huh? Oh, right. Well, like I said earlier, I've nothing but rude lately when what I _should _be is grateful. Besides, it's not like you're going to listen to me anyways, so I might as well stop complaining." she said with a shrug. "I figured you'd get annoyed with my attitude and leave me alone, but I guess not. Don't say I didn't warn you, though."

* * *

Fin.

-Sorry for the _huuuge_ delay, but i've been experiencing technical difficulties. -gonna try to upload more frequently. i'd like to give a special thanks to _Mikiko97 _and _Wulf 4 Life_ for their reviews/favorites! i'd also like to thank _LunaBlackLovesPie _and _oreobabe100_ for favoriting! You guys rock!

I do not own Bleach. If I did, this would not be a fanfic.

Pleeease review!


	5. Sensei and Student

Sensei and Student

_Location Unknown_

* * *

Four soul reapers are standing in a rough semicircle. They are all wearing cloaks that hide their faces. A fifth then joins them, cloaked as well, and stands in the open part of the semicircle.

"_Well?_" asks one, the only female of the group. "Any sign of it?"

"No. Not tonight, I'm afraid."

"_rrrrgh, this is taking too long!" _snaps another. The others murmur in agreement.

"Peace, my brethren, peace! I am still more than certain that what we seek is here in this town. The sweet liquor of revenge will bless our lips soon enough."

_Much later, at Karakura High_

* * *

Kyoko had just walked in the door when Keigo suddenly wraps his arms around her from behind and pulls her into a tight hug.

"Hellooooo, Kyok-_oooooooo!" _

Without thinking, Kyoko had grabbed him by the collar and thrown him over her shoulder. She blinked, a little surprised, when she saw Keigo fall into a heap on the floor.

"Oops. Did I do that?" she asked as innocently as possible.

A few people looked up curiously, but most continued with their own business, disinterested. Most people were used to seeing Keigo getting knocked around. Puzzled, she continued to her seat. Ryo, Michiru, and Chizuru were standing around her desk waiting for her. "What's up?" she asked hesitantly.

"That." Ryo indicated to a package laying on her desk. Small and rectangular, it was wrapped in brown paper and tied with a light blue ribbon.

"What's that?"

"We don't know. It was here when we got here this morning." says Michiru.

"Aren't you going to open it?" asks Chizuru excitedly.

She does. Gingerly untying the ribbon, she sates the other girls' curiosity.

"No, way!" she gasps in disbelief. "Ch!b! Pan!c Volume 1?"

"Don't you already have that?" asks Ichigo, who happened to be listening.

"Yeah, but I-" she broke off. The first copy she had gotten was ruined because she had dropped it into a puddle when she was attacked the day before. _"But how? I hadn't told anyone about that!" _she thought, a little distressed.

_That night_

* * *

Toshiro had decided to eat out tonight. He was getting a bit tired of his own cooking. However, he had already spent the last half-hour wandering around Karakura Town looking for a place to eat, with no luck. As soon as he finally found some restaurants, of course, his soul phone went off.

When he found the hollows, Kyoko was there, too. It appeared the she had just arrived, as well.

"You know how to appear at just the right time, don't you?" she asked playfully.

"I suppose so." he replied coolly as they drew their zanpakutos.

There it was again. That same clumsy style. The more Toshiro watched, the more sure he was that it was not done on purpose. It wasn't that she wasn't effective, but she often resulted to hacking and slashing wildly, not unlike how Ichigo used to fight.

There weren't that many hollows this time, so they were rid of them pretty quickly.

"I don't know how you've managed to fight hollows for this long and not get killed. Your form really sucks!" comments Toshiro.

"Hey! No fair! I'm a rogue, remember? I didn't get the special training you got!"

"True."

They are interrupted by Kyoko's stomach growling loudly. "Ehehehe….guess I forgot about dinner….aww, and at this hour, there's no way Yuzu's gonna make me anything!" she moans.

Toshiro starts blushing and looks away. "I was just going to go eat myself…I suppose it wouldn't hurt if I got you something, too…"

"Really! Thanks!"

They end up going to a small restaurant/sushi bar. Kyoko orders the most expensive thing on the menu, sushi and sashimi, but Toshiro doesn't seem to mind. He orders the same thing.

"Y'know, you really need to lighten up." says Kyoko, sipping from her soda. "You're always so serious. It's not good for you."

"…" he only grumbles in response.

Their waitress stumbles by. "Jeez, she's clumsier than me, and that's saying _a lot!_" mutters Kyoko.

They return to their meals. Without warning, the waitress trips and a large bowl of miso soup she was carrying falls off her tray and lands on Kyoko's head. Toshiro looks up to see her drenched in soup, with the bowl perched on her head like a goofy hat. Not expecting such a sight, he couldn't stop himself from laughing uncontrollably.

"_Ahahahahahahahahahaha! _You look _ridiculous! Hahaha!_ Kyoko, you should see yourself!"

Kyoko looks at her reflection in the window. She starts to laugh as well.

The waitress apologizes repeatedly, and gives Kyoko some towels to dry herself with.

She takes the bowl off her head. "You see, _that's_ what I'm talking about!"

"Hmm?"

"Isn't it more fun when you cut loose once in a while?"

"…"

The waitress leaves their bill on the table before leaving. A gust of wind blows through the café as someone opens the door, and blows the bill off the table.

"I got it!" they both say as they both reach down at the same time. When their hands both touch the bill at the same time, they both look up. Their faces are mere centimeters apart. Both blushing violently, Toshiro grabs the bill before they both snap back to their seats. They are silent for a long time, both lost in their own thoughts.

"Kyoko, I've decided that I'm going to train you." says Toshiro out of the blue.

"What?"

"You said yourself that you didn't receive any kind of instruction after you became a soul reaper, right?"

"Well, yeah, but…"

"Do you know where Urahara's Candy Store is?"

"Yes."

"Meet me there tomorrow afternoon."

"_uuh…_If you say so…"

* * *

_The next day, in front of Urahara's shop_

Toshiro was standing outside Urahara's shop, waiting. When Kyoko finally showed up, the first thing he did was scold her.

"Where have you been?"

"Hey! You never specified a time, so you can't say anything about me being late!"

"…~_grumble~…_Fine, let's just get started, shall we?"

They walked inside. "Mister Urahara! Do you mind if I use your underground training room?"

Kisuke pops into the front room. "I don't see why not. Why do you ask-" he spots Kyoko and stops in his tracks, all amusement gone. "Well, well. _You're _certainly the last person I expected to see here."

"Hello, Kisuke." says Kyoko darkly.

"I see you two know each other." "…You could say that…" she says bitterly.

"You're free to use my training room as much as you'd like" says Urahara, changing the subject. He steps back. As Toshiro walks by, he says in a low voice, "I'd be careful, if I were you." before retreating to the back of the store.

"Alright" says Toshiro. "I want you to attack me."

"_WHAT!_"

"Just do it. I want to see how strong you are."

Kyoko draws her sword and charges at Toshiro. He blocks her attack effortlessly. "Wow. You really do suck."

"Aw, that's mean!" Toshiro walks up and snatches her sword out of her hands. "Hey! What are you doing?"

"You're too slow. We have a lot of work to do before you can even start with the sword." he scans his surroundings. "I want you to run around the perimeter of this room."

"**YOU'VE GOTTA BE JOKING! THIS PLACE IS FRICKIN' HUGE!"**

"I know. That's why you're doing it."

"But- what about all these cliffs and stuff?"

"If there is a mountain, you climb it. If there is a gorge, you jump it."

"_You're crazy!"_

"Tessai! Do you have a stopwatch I can borrow? I'll need something to write with, too." Tessai, who seems to materialize out of nowhere, hands him the objects.

"On my mark." Kyoko crouches down. "GO!" She takes off and streaks out of sight.

* * *

_A looooong time later…_

Dragging her feet, she collapses across the finish line. Toshiro is not pleased. "That was…PATHETIC!"

Kyoko looked discouraged. Then something occurs to her. "Hey. If you think you're so great, why don't _you_ do it, then!"

Toshiro is a caught off guard by this request. "Alright, then." he says with a smirk. He places his sword against a rock. "Whenever you're ready."

"GO!"Toshiro runs the entire perimeter in less than half her time. "Wow. I really _do _suck…" she whines.

"We're _~huff~_ just _~huff~_ going to have to _~huff~_ work on it."

Kyoko ran the entire distance, again and again. Each time she got a little faster. In almost no time at all, her time was nearly as good as Toshiro's.

* * *

_Later_

Kyoko and Toshiro were headed for home when Kyoko sensed the presence of yet another hollow. When they found it, it was chasing after the spirit of a little boy. They killed the hollow easily. However, when Toshiro attempted to perform a konso on the boy, he ran away.

"Stop fooling around. It's time for you to go to the soul society."

"I-I-I'm not ready to go yet!" cries the little boy.

"Be brave for me, ok?" says Kyoko soothingly. "The soul society is a wonderful place."

"H-Have you ever been there before?"

"Well, no…"

"Then how do you know that it's not scary?"

"I _don't_ know. But that's all part of being brave. Doing what you have to, even if you _are_ scared." she smiles warmly. "It's time to go."

"…ok…"

She taps the hilt of her zanpakuto on the child's forehead, and he disappears in a blue light. Toshiro walks up as she performs the konso.

"You did that very well."

"Yeah, well, I've spent my whole career as a soul reaper in the world of the living, so I know how it goes pretty well."

"The way you comforted that child…"

"Child spirits are like that. They're often confused and very scared. Sometimes they die before they can even grasp the concept of death. You can only imagine how that must feel…when no one can see or hear you anymore, and you don't know why…"

"You sound like you know from experience."

"I don't. I knew exactly what was going to happen when I died."

The two walk back to where their gigais are.

"So you've _never _been to the soul society?"

"No. Never."

Toshiro pauses. "Kyoko, come back with me."

"What?…" she stared at him.

"You're obviously a very talented soul reaper. The Thirteen Court Guard Squads could use someone like you. You'd be a ranked officer almost immediately. Hell, if you could perform bankai, you'd make captain easily. I'd certainly nominate you…"

"…I can't. I'm a rogue, after all… I wouldn't be welcome there."

"I'm sure I could pull some strings-"

"No. You don't understand. The soul society…never mind. Goodnight, Toshiro." she returns to her gigai and leaves.

The End.


	6. The Black Cat

_All characters except for the OCs belong to Tite Kubo._

_The Black Cat?_

* * *

The hollows were still continually appearing. It seemed like someone was always ducking out of class to fight. Unfortunately for Ichigo, Toshiro insisted that he stay in class, because since he was still, in a way, human, he still needed to learn what the teachers were teaching. Actually, it seemed like Toshiro was _always _the one leaving. Rangiku figured he was probably getting tired of having to listen to teachers, that it was hurting his pride as a captain.

Rukia, however, noticed that sometimes the hollows disappeared before it was even possible that anyone could've gotten to them.

* * *

_Lunchtime_

The group was eating together when unexpectedly, Kyoko wandered over.

"Hey. What's up with you?" asks Ichigo, noting the distraught expression on her face.

"I forgot my lunch." she whined.

"Well, it's too late now."

"I know…"

Toshiro had only eaten about half of his lunch. He puts his chopsticks down and pushes the lunchbox to her.

"Huh?" she looks from the food to him.

"Just take it." he says calmly. "I wasn't that hungry, anyways."

"Uh…Thanks." she says as she begins to eat.

* * *

_After School_

As usual, they warmed up by running the perimeter of the basement.

"Hey!" Toshiro shouted to catch Kyoko's attention. "Catch!" He threw her zanpakuto to her. Still off guard, she caught it rather ungracefully. "Now that you're fast enough, let's see what you can do."

Toshiro took a stance this time, and once again Kyoko attacked. With one swing, he knocks her sword out of her hands, and stops her attack.

"Aw, what did I do wrong _this time_?"

He hands her sword back to her. "Act like you're about to attack."

"Okay…" she does as she's told.

"…_No wonder_…you're grip is all wrong."

"Huh?"

"Tessai, could you set up some practice dummies around here?"

"Alright, now watch me closely."

"OK! I'm watching!" she chirps cheerfully.

He flawlessly decapitates the dummy.

She watched in awe. "_wow. He really is amazing…"_

"Alright. Now you try."

Kyoko tried to imitate what he did, but it never seemed right.

"Here, let me show you" He walks up behind her and adjusts her hands. They both blush. "See?" He walks away from her and she remains in an attacking pose. He then unexpectedly swings his sword at her, and knocks it out of her hands once again. "_Ugh,_ **pay attention!**"

"Hey! How was I supposed to know you were gonna attack me like that!"

"If you have drawn your zanpakuto, you should be prepared for battle."

She picks up her zanpakuto and regains her stance. Toshiro walks a circle around her, inspecting her. He puts a finger on the tip of her blade and pushes down. "You're too rigid. Loosen up a bit." She does. He tries again, and she nearly drops it. "…Too much."

"**Would you make up your mind already?**"

He glares at her. _"When battling hollows, there is no room for sloppiness. I said I was going to teach you how to fight better, and I don't intend to cut corners. If you're doing something wrong, I'm going to make you work at it until you can do it in your sleep. __**Do I make myself clear?"**_

"Y-yes sir!"

"Now try again."

"ok…"

"…place your hands farther apart. That way you have more control…but not _too_ far apart, or you lose power."

He tests her again. "…perfect."

* * *

_Later_

As Toshiro left the shop, he suddenly sensed an unfamiliar spiritual pressure coming from down town. He didn't know who or what it came from, but it definitely gave him an uneasy feeling.

When he arrived, the others are already there. They are greeted by immense spiritual pressure. Five cloaked soul reapers appear.

"Who are you?" shouts Ichigo.

Their leader looks down at them. He has ragged black hair, dark eyes, and stubble adorning his chin. He does not have a zanpakuto. "I am Kamma." he states, glaring at them. "So you are the ones who have been defeating all of my hollows?"

"That's right. Wait, _your _hollows?"

He ignored Ichigo's question. "I see. That would explain things." He looks a bit annoyed. "Tell me, have you ever heard of one known as 'The Black Cat'?"

"Black cat?" says Ichigo blankly, a dumbfounded expression on his face. "Uh…no…"

"Do you think he means Yoruichi?" asks Rukia to no one in particular.

"We don't know any 'Black Cat'!" shouts Ichigo in response.

The woman with them turns her attention to Toshiro. "Hey, You! With the white hair!"

Toshiro is caught a little off guard from being addressed so rudely.

"You know where it is, don't you?" she says happily. "I can sense its residual spiritual energy all over you!"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Liar. I'm never wrong."

"Well, you're wrong this time. I haven't been around anyone lately." he lied. _'Black Cat?' _he thought to himself. _*'I'm bad luck.'* _The words rang in his head.

Kamma studied him. Toshiro glared back with a hardened teal gaze. "_Hmm." _Kamma realized that he wasn't going to get anything out of them, whether they knew anything or not. "Until another time, perhaps." he says as he turns away from them.

"But-" said Giza. She did not like to be wrong.

One glare from Kamma was enough to shut her up. She reluctantly followed as they flash-stepped away.

* * *

_Later that night_

Toshiro was sitting on the roof of his apartment. _"He said he was looking for a 'Black Cat.'" _he thought to himself. Kyoko's words came back to him once again.

'… _I'm bad luck. My entire life, I've only ever brought misfortune to myself and those around me…. ' _

"…_could it be that they were looking for her? And if they were, why?" _

'_I wouldn't be welcome there… No. You don't understand. The soul society…never mind'_

"…_Could…could they be looking for her?" _The thought of Kyoko being connected to the enemy made his stomach turn. _"But why? What could people like that possibly want with her?" _He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts, running his fingers through his white hair. _"Why do I even care?…" _He couldn't bring himself to answer this question. _"It doesn't matter. I need to stop shirking my responsibilities as captain. I have to ask her." _He had made up his mind, even though some small part of him didn't want to know the answer.

* * *

_The End_

-Sorry for the _huge_ delay in uploading new chapters, but my internet kinda went screwy with me...

That, and I was pretty discouraged by this one really nasty review that was nothing but 8+ (I forgot just how many exactly) paragraphs of everything I _allegedly _did wrong. (However, after back-checking myself, I found that half of the complaints were things that this person misread. Or in some cases was being entirely too picky.)

Anyway, enough of my whining. If I can remember how Fanfiction works again (I'm having some serious difficulty editing right now) I'll try to bring (Hopefully) more frequent updates.

[EDIT]

No, no I won't. Like my profile says, that is a lie told because I was inspired at the time. The truth is, I'm rewriting and reconsidering a lot, starting with chapter 7. Also, I have a few other projects I'm failing at. So, sorry for the inconvenience, but I'm putting this on the back burner for now, until I get some new inspiration. (positive reviews would help some... also, tell me what you'd like to see happen. I'm rather curious, and like I said, it'd really give me some inspiration. [Don't worry, if I do, I won't use your ideas without your permission.])


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